Blackout

Posted on March 26, 2012 by carriegelson

Picture Book Love #4: Celebrating picture books that are just too good not to gush over.

Blackout by John Rocco is not just visually gorgeous (It is a 2011 Caldecott Honour Book after all), it also reads bearing gifts. It reminds us to take and honour the gift of time, the gift of family, the gift of slowing down and being in the moment. And it does this without being preachy, sappy or judgemental. It just shows us that busy often gets in the way of family time and removing ourselves from the busy world can be possible, right at our own kitchen table.

The story starts out letting us peek into the windows of a family’s apartment. Everyone busy. Computers. Cooking. Chatting on the phone. Don’t disturb. Leave me alone. No time for a game that the youngest family member wants to play. And then . . . A blackout. No power. No lights. Nothing works but . . . time. Flashlights and candles make the dark, quiet world go from scary to cozy. But the muggy summer heat soon leads the family to the rooftop where starlight creates an art filled sky of wonder. Now nobody is busy and the family revels in time together.

When the lights come on again, the family is not ready to give up the special closeness the blackout created. Family game time by candlight is first on the “to do” list.

This book reminds us to look for wonder in the simple and everyday and to treasure family time above all else. Because everything can get in the way. But only if you let it . . .

Mini Grey Adoration

Posted on March 18, 2012 by carriegelson

Mini Grey has been on my radar recently. I have been odering her books, doing a little excited leap when I find one of her titles in the library and scanning beloved blogs for talk of her illustrations/books. I have not been disappointed!

I found Jim (A Cautionary Tale) at the public library and brought it into class the very next day to read aloud. “This,” I promised my students, “you will love. Gruesome. Guts and gore! And the text rhymes!” (This group of kids love rhyming text!) With Hilaire Belloc‘s original text and Grey‘s wonderful illustrations, Jim (one of Belloc’s Cautionary Tales for children first published in 1907) certainly delivered! Our lovely Jim has it good. All sorts of lovely things to eat. Tricycles to ride on. Stories read to him. Even trips to the zoo.

But then Jim does what he has explicitly been told not to do . . . He runs away from his nurse/guardian! And, well, there is no sense easing into this . . . Jim is eaten by a lion! (Starting with his toes) Grey’s illustrations are delightful. As in the format of the book: lift the flap, fold down sections, panels and fold out pages. We couldn’t quite believe that there was a picture of just Jim’s head edged in red. (“That’s blood!” “He is really dead!” “Blood!”) For seven, eight and nine year olds, discovering this in a picture book is highly appealing because it borders on maybe “not quite appropriate for children.” And what could be better than that? As soon as I finished the book, I was begged to read it again. Many times throughout the day. 🙂 My favourite picture? The lion (caught eating a boy by the zookeeper) slinking away in a dissapointed, very guilty, rage.

I purchased Mini Grey‘s The Very Smart Pea and the Princess to be for our class collection. One, because we love fractured fairy tales. Two, what a great example of an unexpected narrator- in this story, the pea tells the story. And three? Mini Grey! At first this version of the classic Princess and the Pea story doesn’t seem all that far away from the original (except maybe for the creepy fact that many characters have pea green eyes).

But soon, the reader begins to realize, something else is going to be delivered in this story.

What . . . you might wonder?

Well, finally, an explanation for how a teeny tiny pea is felt through all of those mattresses. Hint: more about the power of suggestion than true princess special sensitivity. But, a wedding does happen. The prince happily marries the gardener and the promise of a very productive life awaits.

How I have missed Traction Man is Here is beyond me. This book is hilarious and has the uncanny ability to totally appeal to adults and children alike. Traction Man is an action figure. His trusty sidekick? Scrubbing brush. As in the scrubbing brush you use to scour the dishes or scrub your toes. So, I’ve done some research. My nine year old finds this hilarious. An unsuspecting five year old test case who came for dinner found this hilarious. And. . . an adult friend (whose age starts with a 4) read this book cover to cover twice. Laughed through it both times. And then returned to the scrubbing brush pages for some extra giggles. This book is beyond delightful! It is absurd. Vulnerable. Quirky. I love it! And who can resist our hero Traction Man in the green knitted outfit Granny made for him? Specially for jungles. Of course!

Celebrating the wonder and splendor of imaginative play, Traction Man is Here is a must read!

So, if you haven’t discovered Mini Grey . . . what are you waiting for?

Prudence Wants a Pet

Posted on March 11, 2012 by carriegelson

Picture Book Love #2: Celebrating picture books that are just too good not to gush over.

Okay start counting how many books you have read about a child who really wants a pet and the parents say no. No, it’s too much work. No, you won’t look after it. No, we don’t have time, space, energy . . . I can think of many. So how can another book on this theme really seem fresh, new, inspired? Prudence Wants a Pet written by Cathleen Daly and illustrated by Stephen Michael King will sweep you off your feet. This book is simply about the determination and charisma of Prudence. And yes, her extreme and unrelenting desire for a pet! I dare you not to adore her!

Prudence wants a pet

Prudence really wants a pet but her parents roll out those typical parent excuses. So she is left to her own devices. She gets a pet and names it Branch. Because, well, it is a branch. It lives on the front porch and after tripping up Dad eight times, Branch ended up in little pieces on top of the wood pile. Prudence gets a new pet named Twig (because yes, you guessed it Twig is a twig). Twig is too small and gets lost. So Prudence moves on. She attaches a leash to an old shoe, which just so happens to be her new pet named Formal Footwear. Really! Then Prudence tries making her little brother Milo a pet but things don’t go over very well with her parents when she feeds him seeds and grass. So on to bigger and better things! A car tire. Just try to keep a straight face! Finally following an extremely disappointing attempt to raise sea buddies after which Prudence retires to her closet, her parents consider an actual pet for her.

At this point, this book is poised to deliver an expected, typical, wrap it up happy ending. But no, this is where Prudence hooked me. Where I swooned. Completely done for. Prudence was so excited when she heard a “Mew” coming from the box her parents gave her that . . .

Her eyes got hot and tingly. She’s so happy it leaks out of her eyes a little. She didn’t know about those kinds of tears.

Seriously? Wow. Tell me you don’t need this book. It is so much more than a “Girl wants Pet. She begs and begs. Girl gets pet,” kind of story. It is Prudence.

Pete & Pickles

Posted on March 9, 2012 by carriegelson

Picture Book Love #1

Some picture books knock me off my feet. 32 little pages of big power. So this is book number 1 on this blog in the category of Picture Book Love. A new way to honour and celebrate picture books that are just too good not to gush over.

This book created by Berkeley Breathed has many themes I like to address through picture books: courage, friendship, and diversity. But it is also about love. It celebrates love in the happiest and most joyful of ways. But it doesn’t scrimp on the realities of love: loss, pain, frustration, forgiveness, sacrifice. Love is all of it and this book delivers. It takes you on a journey sailing through a myriad of emotions and delivers you on the other side, changed. Better. Brighter. Exhausted. I have read this book now multiple times and it is as lovely shared as it is in a solo reading. It insists on repeated readings. It is a book I had to instantly own so I could revisit it anytime I wanted. I LOVE this book. Let me tell you why . . .

Pete meets Pickles in the strangest of ways. It is a stormy night and Pete is in the middle of a nightmare about drowning when a sudden sound wakes him. Pete has an odd feeling that something is not quite right. And it isn’t. There is an elephant hiding under his lampshade. A soggy, wet elephant (Pickles) who suddenly grabs Pete with her trunk, looks at him with eyes filled with fear and a request: “Help me.” Things happen very quickly and within moments Pete has given Pickles up to a clown who arrives at the door looking for an escaped elephant. In the morning, Pete realizes that Pickles left behind a gift of dandelions. He deems them ridiculous but he has been touched and before he knows it, he meets Pickles again – this time chained up in a circus tent.

What follows is a beautiful and often wonderfully silly story of break out escapes, changes to Pete’s simple and solo world and struggles between embracing this new colourful, dramatic life with Pickles in it or longing for the quiet simplicity of life before . . .

When Pete’s sensible nature overrules, he sends Pickles packing. But a sudden plumbing disaster changes everything. Both characters need to find safety and it seems there might not be enough safety to go around. How this book turns out must be experienced to be believed. Your heart will be in your throat as you turn the last few pages. Danger and potential of real disaster. Of the heartbreaking kind. But . . . suffice it to say one of the most beautiful moments I have ever experienced in a picture book awaits and in the end you will be smiling in the happiest of ways. Ahhh, what we do for love!

Breathed explains that a sketch (above) his five year old daughter had made on a restaurant napkin inspired this book. He asked his daughter Sophie about her sketch of an elephant holding a pig and putting flowers on its head. Why was the elephant doing that? She answered “The pig’s sad. Because he’s lonely.” Then she leaned in and whispered, “. . . But he doesn’t know it.”

Pete & Pickles reminds us that relationships are the antidote to loneliness. And sometimes they arrive in your life in the strangest of ways.

“Stereotypes shrink your brain!”

Posted on February 29, 2012 by carriegelson

In preparation for Pink Shirt Day, we have been having discussions about bullying, stereotypes and how cruel and ignorant people can be. These discussions have been inspired by many picture books that have helped us understand and explore stereotypes – particularly gender stereotypes. Over the past two days we have been making pink day collages based in part on Henri Matisse‘s collages. We have also been writing banners that question stereotypes.

The overall effect posted up on our hallway bulletin board is very powerful!

Some girls really wanted to point out that generalizations about girls did NOT apply to them! Carmen explains that she doesn’t like wearing dresses or skirts!

Catriona is also very clear:

Boys also wanted people to understand that there shouldn’t be stereoptypes based on their gender. Sergio‘s words are powerful.

Isa always sees the beauty in the natural world that many of us miss. His statement is an important one!

Deandra reminds us that it is never too early to talk about our appearance and question the value we put on it. None of us have to be perfect but it is certainly sad when girls feel that pressure to look a certain way because they’re supposed to be “pretty.”

These pieces were inspired by three great stories we read and talked about today.

William’s Doll by Charolette Zolotow. Illustrated by William Pene Du Bois.

William really wants a doll. His Dad thinks he should have a basketball. The boy next door calls him a “sissy” and his brother thinks he’s a creep. But William desperately wants a doll to care for and love. When Grandma comes to visit, she understands. She buys William a doll and makes his father understand that he is thinking of the whole thing in a limited way. William wants a doll to love, but also to “play” at being a father – learning to do all of the things he will need to do one day for his own child. Such a lovely timeless story that shakes up the stereotype that dolls are just for girls!

Oliver Button is a Sissy by Tomie dePaola

Everyone in Oliver’s life seems to struggle with the fact that he wants to dance instead of doing boy things like “. . . any kind of ball!” The boys from school are particularly cruel, writing hurtful things on the wall at school.

Oliver never gives up his passion and shows everyone, even those boys, that someone who is true to themselves is a real star!

The Only Boy in Ballet Class by Denise Gruska and illustrated by Amy Wummer is a more recently published book addressing the same theme.

Tucker loves to dance. Lives to dance. Dances through life! This should be something to celebrate but of course the boys his age tease him for being different. His Uncle Frank is convinced he should be playing football. When Tucker is approached by the boys to be on the team for the championship game because they must have one more player, his Uncle agrees for him. Tucker manages to bring the team to victory by using his dance agility and grace to avoid being tackled. What is great about this book is that it doesn’t end here. The next page shows Tucker walking to his dance studio door and finding a pile of running shoes. The football boys who teased him have realized that ballet moves are pretty awesome and have come to join his class. Ballet becomes something cool and not stereotypically just a girl’s thing!

Our discussions were fantastic today. A few more important points:

* The title of this post was inspired by Catriona who wrote, “Your brain shrinks when you do steroetypes.”

*We had a very interesting conversation about why lego would market pink lego when girls already like lego!? They’ll like pink lego more? What’s with that?

*We did talk about why each of the books we read today featured a boy character being teased for doing a so called “girl” thing. What about girls who do “boy” things? Great question and on our “to read” pile tomorrow is Princess Knight but . . . It does seem that often girls liking/doing “boy” things is more generally tolerated than boys liking/doing “girl” things.

*The great thing I noticed? Stereotypes are not ingrained in these children’s brains like they were when I was a child! “Of course boys can dance,” they would comment easily. “Boys can like dolls and girls don’t have to! It’s just who you are!” Yes, we need to explore stereotypes. Yes, we need to talk about how ignorance leads to cruelty/bullying. But we can also be grateful that these children don’t just celebrate diversity. Diversity is, for the most part, what they know and expect. Hoorah!

The Sniffles for Bear

Posted on February 26, 2012 by carriegelson

Bill, our BLG reader this week read us the very funny The Sniffles for Bear written by Bonny Becker and illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton.

Oh, poor, poor Bear! He has a terrible, terrible cold – quite possibly the worst in existence of the world he is convinced! (Bear is quite the “Drama King” we quickly realized). When Mouse arrives at the door ready to help, Bear is suspicious of his cheerful demeanour. Mouse starts to read aloud and Bear insists he stop, “I fear you do not appreciate the gravity of my situation.” Mouse changes tactics and decides to serenade Bear with a soothing version of “She’ll be coming around the Mountain.” Bear complains. No, no, no! He needs mournful songs. Mouse pulls out his banjo. “This is impossible, intolerable!” Bear exclaims.

And on it goes. Mouse tries his best to comfort poor Bear. He drags him up the stairs, tucks him into bed and serves him nettle soup (which Bear thinks tastes like spinach and straw). But Bear is still dreadfully and dramatically ill! There is will dictation (“I leave my red roller skates to . . .”), some dramatic shouting and finally . . . sleep.

When Bear awakes, it is his turn to play nurse. : ) This is a giggle inducing book! We have been learning about different genres and one student pointed out that it should go into the humour basket. “No right to the giggles section!” called out someone else.

Our student reviewers report:

Raymond: It was funny when the mouse sang. “Ooooooh she’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes She’ll be coming around the mountain when she comes.” And I liked when the mouse pulled the bear up the stairs.

Truman: I like the part when bear asked mouse (shaking his trembling hand) to get him to bed.

Carmen: I liked the part when mouse went into bear’s house because he was sick. then mouse took out a yellow book and sang, “Ooooh she’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes. She’ll be coming . . ” “Disgraceful!” said Bear.

Catriona: It was REALLY funny when Bill sang the part of the song that the mouse was trying to sing to bear. There was SOOO many giggles that they should have called this book, “The Giggle Book” instead of “Sniffles for Bear.”

Ice Bear: In the Steps of the Polar Bear

Posted on February 25, 2012 by carriegelson

Today we read the Ice Bear (In the Steps of the Polar Bear) written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Gary Blythe. Our goal: to move away from quick questions and begin asking more deep thinking questions.

Polar Bar, Nanuk, is perfectly suited to the Arctic climate and landscape. For many generations, the Inuit people have learned how to live and survive in the Arctic habitat by watching the great Ice Bear. Nicola Davies tells us how polar bears survive in the Northern landscape weaving facts on each page into the beautiful story she tells in such lovely poetic text.

As I read this story aloud, we stopped on each page to share our questions and Ms. Hibbert recorded them. Our curiousity filled three pages of chart paper!

We then looked at all of our questions and coded them. FO: Found Out (we discovered the answer in the story as we read on) R: Research (to find the answer, we will have to do some research) I: Infer (we need to infer to figure out the answer – using our background knowledge and our reasoning)

As we looked at the three charts, we noticed that we had very few questions coded FO (Found Out). This is exciting as it means we are asking fewer quick questions and more complex or deep thinking questions. Using Adrienne Gear‘s Non-Fiction Reading Power we have been learning to distinguish between quick and deep thinking questions. For our purposes here – quick questions are questions that we find the answer to (often down the page or a page or two later), where there is only one answer and where once we know the answer, our thinking stops. Deep thinking questions, on the other hand, inspire more questions, often have more than one answer or require us to do research, more thinking and/or talking to come to an answer at all.

Ms. Hibbert and I were also excited to see students asking multipart questions i.e. Do babies have fur? If not, how do they keep warm? or How often does a polar bear eat and does this affect how much it eats at a time? It was also fantastic to see questions inspire other questions between the students. At one point, Shae-Lynn was sitting right beside my chair with her hand up waiting to share her question and listening to others. “Oh!” she suddenly exclaimed, “Now I have three questions!”

Students then went back to their tables to write and draw about their learning and to share what they were still wondering.

Some students began reading the books they were looking at for ideas on how to draw a polar bear and talked with each other about what they noticed.

All of a sudden, the research began happening as students realized that they were finding the answers to the unanswered questions we had included on our charts.

“Hey Ms. Gelson look what Carmen and I discovered!” Catriona summoned me over. She went on to show me the section in the book they had found that talked about polar bear fur in the water. They discovered that the guard hairs are oily and waterproof and hollow. This answered our question about how polar bears can be such good swimmers and whether or not they had fur that wouldn’t get too wet and heavy.

Some learning shared in student writing:

* Male polar bears weigh more than females. I wonder if they eat more than females as well.

* I think the baby polar bears are more white than the Moms and really cute.

* I know that polar bears are as fast as a snowmobile. Bears eat seals. They use their sharp claws and kill the seals quickly.

* A female polar bear can have 1 to 3 baby cubs at a time

*I found out that when there is zero seals, polar bears will eat grass, dead birds and fish.

ABCDEFG . . . Alphabet books for you and me!

Posted on February 23, 2012 by carriegelson

The alphabet. The basis for all we write and read. Let’s celebrate our letters! We can do it with rhyme, with nonsense, in quiet or noisy ways. Our letters tell many stories. Some wonderful books to celebrate the A, B, Cs!

Achoo! Bang! Crash! The Noisy Alphabet by Ross MacDonald

Noisy letters. Yippee! Wahoo! Ding Dang, Eeek, Fwip, Grunt, Honk Honk and on it goes. This book delivers our 26 letters marching across the pages with much exuberance and the aid of a vintage printing press. Noisy! But gorgeous!

LMNO peas created by Keith Baker

These little green peas inspire many different ideas for occupations. Painters. poets. plumbers, pilots, parachutists? That covers the “P”s! Want to guess the “S” occupations? Come on! This is a great way to share this book as a read aloud!

Dr. Seuss’s ABC

Nobody does nonsense better than Dr. Seuss! He is the King of Silly 🙂 My class loved this book and begged me to read certain pages over and over so we could try to recite particular pages together as a class. A taste. Big M little m: Many mumbling mice are making midnight music in the moonlight . . . mighty nice

Alphabetter written by Dan Bar-el and illustrated by Graham Ross.

This book invites the reader to do many things on each page. First, enjoy a story that weaves through letter by letter.

Alberto had an alligator, but he didn’t have a bathing suit.

Benoit had a bathing suit, but he didn’t have a clarinet.

Second, search each page (sometimes you need to search and search and search) for a hidden letter. (a on A page, b on B page, etc)

My Little Sister Hugged an Ape written by Bill Grossman and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes.

This alphabet book has much more text than others and carries us along in delightful rhymes. The little sister, on a hugging spree, hugs animals from A to Z. Fun!! And then some more! A sample:

She gave an OCTOPUS a hug. Those eight long arms felt nice and snug,

Gripping my sister in eight different spots. And tangling themselves into eight different knots.

The Dangerous Alphabet written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Gris Grimly

Follow not just letters through the pages. This is is a superbly edgy journey through the land of adventure. Pirates. Monsters. Bats. Creepy tunnels by boat. Eyes are watching you. Will you make it to safety? Follow two children and their pet gazelle through a world beneath the city. Beautifully creepy.

H is for “Help me!” – a cry, and a warning . . .

Z is for Moose by Kelly Bingham and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky

This book could be a very simple, run of the mill ABC book. B is for Ball, C is for Cat, etc. But. . . a very impatient moose cannot wait for his turn and M is very far away when we begin with A! Full of moose mishaps, much humour and a lovely act of kindness. This is easily one of the most shared book during buddy reading time in my room.

Bruno Munari’s ABC

First published in 1960, travel through interesting pairings and graphically interesting pages.

A piano, a Package, Peanuts, a Pear a Pea Pod for a . . . (turn the page) a Quail.

Each page flows and connects in the most interesting of ways

Flora McDonnell’s ABC

A study in letters, opposites and clever pairings. Each page has 2 objects beginning with a specific letter. Some of my favourites? The large giant with a tiny red glove perched on his thumb, a regal tiger with a teapot balanced on his head and a rhinoceros sniffing at a radish. Bright, bold and beautiful.

Caveman a B.C. Story by Janee Trasler

A hilarious tale told one word at a time in ABC order. Much humour and much to infer.

These books are not just for our children learning their letters. Read them right into the intermediate grades. They let us guess, wonder and delight in the magic of language – from one letter to long strands of text! Enjoy!

Sophie’s Masterpiece

Posted on February 21, 2012 by carriegelson

Sophie’s Masterpiece is one of the most beautiful picture books I know to illustrate the concepts of kindness and generosity. Written by Eileen Spinelli and illustrated by Jane Dyer.

Poor Sophie the spider has a horrible time when she tries to find a place of her own in a boarding house. The tenants screech, swat at her and hide out on the windowsill to escape her. She moves from room to room, unwanted despite the thoughtful spinning she does for the various people she encounters: a web of curtains, a bright blue suit or a a pair of new slippers. Finally, when she must make the long and tiring ascent to the third floor in search of a place to be safe, Sophie is much older and very weary. She finds herself sharing a room with a young woman who does not despise her but smiles at her. When the woman has a baby, Sophie gifts the child with a blanket with strands of moonlight, starlight, wisps of night and old lullabies woven into it. So beautiful, a gift of love. Sophie weaves her heart into the farthest corner and is no more. Her last weaving, her masterpiece is such a beautiful act of kindness.

“Look how she was to people,” remarked Shae-Lynn. “After all of that hitting and screeching, she gave her own heart to be kind.”

Some new aspect of kindness for us to consider. Kindness can continue to be given even when so little seems to be received in return. The act of giving brings its own rewards.

After our discussion we spent some time appreciating, Jane Dyer’s art. Wasn’t it clever to make Sophie the spider look part human? It helped us feel extra connected as we witnessed Sophie’s kind acts and selfless giving. We started talking about other half and half creatures. Not part spider/part human but part spider/part bird or part elephant, part robot, etc. Our afternoon art illustrates how we explored that concept.

Shae-Lynn draws her spider/cat balanced in its web.

Markus created “Super Horse” (notice the S.H. initials) part spider/part horse with a fiery tail!

Jacky made a part eagle/part spider creature. Gorgeous!

Catriona made a part lion/part spider and explained that “really being part spider would be helpful to the lion for when it is catching its prey!”

Orange and yellow whimsy

Posted on February 20, 2012 by carriegelson

After hours walking about in the dreary downpour that was Saturday morning in Vancouver, I found myself at the library drawn to specific picture books for their illustrations full of sunny yellow and orange hues. Four especially colourful books made it into my library bag.

My Name is Elizabeth written by Annika Dunklee and illustrated by Matthew Forsythe is a gorgeous book coloured in pale sky blues, orange and black.

Elizabeth is adamant her name is Elizabeth – not Liz, Betsy, Beth or any other shortened form of her name someone dreams up. She was after all named after a Queen, if you didn’t know! We follow Elizabeth through her day as she reminds us frequently that she loves her name. “And I like all the neat things my mouth does when I say it.” So, don’t even try to call her anything other than Elizabeth! She’s having none of that!

Doodleday by Ross Collins is a colourful journey into a world taken over by doodles!

Harvey’s plans to spend the afternoon drawing are strongly discouraged by Mom. “Drawing on Doodleday? Are you crazy?” Unfortunately, boys often don’t listen to their mothers the first time around.

When Harvey does begin to doodle, everything comes to life. He tries to draw one doodle to get rid of another but he ends up with a whole bunch of giant sized creatures bent on destroying his whole block. What can be done? Who can save them all? If your money is on Mom, you just might be right!

The Enormous Potato retold by Aubrey Davis and illustrated by Dusan Petricic reminds us that when everyone contributes, no problem is insurmountable. Gorgeous bright yellow pages!

The farmer’s potato grows and grows. At harvest time, he realizes that getting this potato out of the ground is a job too big for him alone! Celebrating cooperation, perseverance and absolute silliness, this story has a very delicious ending!

Mechanimals created by Chris Tougas is a feast for the eyes and the imagination.

A farmer loses all of his farm animals in a tornado. The twister did however drop a heap of scrap metal and machine parts in his farmyard. He becomes determined to turn the “mess into a masterpiece.” The neighbours scoff. Our farmer turns out to be a kind of creative genius turning “junk” into mechanimals and filling his farm with helpers!